My first quilt was a round robin friendship quilt. We all
had the same instructions so our blocks should have matched. Sadly, when I
began to assemble the quilt I discovered some blocks were off by as much as ½
inch. Blocks that were too big could be trimmed down but the odd assortment of
sizes created a challenge to assemble. I struggled through and managed to put
it together, but a lesson was learned. Blocks really need to be all one size.
It took many more years to piece together enough information to allow me to
approach quilting with the accuracy I wanted.

The Quilter

Many variables contribute to piecing a quilt accurately. The
first variable is you the individual. Just how accurate do you want to be? I
know quilters who literally count the number of machine stitches per seam.
Others count the threads in the fabric. Another quilter I met used magic
markers to touch up seams that showed through the fabric. These are extreme
examples of perfecting a quilt project and you may or may not fit in this category.
If you want this level of accuracy, be prepared to really work hard and above
all learn as much as you can. Most of us will probably be happy with a little
less attention to detail. As you make more quilts, your goals may change also.
Before you begin quilting, decide just where you are on the continuum of
accuracy and accept your abilities at that point. You may find that over time
you become more demanding of yourself, but always accept where you are now. Finally,
never ever point out your flaws or make excuses for your work. When your
admirers praise your efforts, learn to say thank you, I really enjoyed working
on this.

The Fabric

Understanding and choosing fabric is the first step once you
have accepted your role in the quilting process. Not all fabric is equal.
Another of my first projects was a quilted bargello jacket. The shop owner who
taught the class was, of course interested in selling as much fabric as
possible for the project. Because her shop was new and not well stocked, I
found the selection insufficient for what I thought I wanted. I raided my
garment stash, bought other fabric very unsuitable for quilting just to get the
colors I wanted. This resulted in a lot of frustration on my part when I
assembled the quilt sections. Another lesson learned, stick with one hundred
percent cotton when starting out.

This is what you can expect if you buy one hundred percent
cotton. Some fabric will be heavier or denser than other fabric. Some fabric is
loosely woven and some is tightly woven. Other fabrics will shrink when
laundered. Fabrics will be off grain, especially at the end of the bolt. All of
these factors will affect your accuracy in some way.

Fabric is woven and has properties worth knowing. The long
threads that run with the selvedge are the warp threads. These threads tend to
have very little stretch. The threads that run perpendicular to the selvedge
are called the weft. These threads will tend to stretch when handled. You can
test this by holding a piece of fabric and pulling along each direction of the
weave to see which has more give or stretch. Fabric can stretch when cut, sewn
and pressed. The selvedge edge may draw up tighter than the fabric itself,
especially if you launder the fabric. You may not even notice it until you
begin to cut the fabric. To eliminate problems with the selvedge trim it off
before working with your fabric. We will talk about how to tame the stretch and
shrinking of fabric later.

Rulers and Measuring

A basic fact of measuring and cutting – the smaller the
piece cut the more accurate you need to be.

Not all rulers are created equal. Before talking about rulers
and measuring let us do a little experiment. You will need a ruler, a pencil, a
sheet of paper, and a cutting device, either scissors or rotary cutter.

First draw a 2 inch square using the ruler. Label this
square #1

Cut out the square. Be as accurate as you can.

Using square #1 trace a second square and cut it out. Label
it #2.

Using square #2 trace a third square and cut it out. Label
it #3.

Continue until you have 6 squares total. Always use the last
square cut as your template for the next square.

Now place the #1 square on top of the #6 square. Are they
identical or are they way off in size?

You have just experience the phenomena of compounding
errors. Understanding rulers, measuring, and cutting can minimize this problem.

Rulers:

A basic set of starter rulers:

6 inch X 24 inch quilting ruler

6 inch X 12 inch quilting ruler

2 inch X 18 inch C-Thru ruler

Rulers are slippery so you will want to put a nonslip
backing on all rulers. Quilt stores have materials that can be cut to size and
adhered to the ruler. A do-it-yourself option is to cut ½ inch circles from
fine grit sandpaper and glue them on about 6 inches apart with contact cement.

Quilt rulers and grids on cutting boards are wonderful for
cutting but are not very good for accurate measuring. The thickness that makes
them so wonderful for cutting distorts the line you are looking at for
measuring. The other problem is the thickness of the line on the ruler. Do you
cut to the right or the left or somewhere in the middle of the line? It is best
if you try to use the center point of the line. A better ruler for measuring is
a 2 inch X 18 inch ruler by C-Thru. These rulers are the ones to use for making
templates, checking for accuracy, especially on small piecing. You will also
want to use a .5 mechanical pencil to ensure consistency in the line width.

Many rulers start at the exact edge. Over time, the corners
of the ruler can become worn or nicked. To measure a 2 inch line, place the 1
inch point of the ruler on the material and mark the 3 inch point.

Templates:

To make a template or anything else you will be tracing you
will want to be consistent in how you hold the pencil. If you hold the pencil
at a 90 degree angle to the paper along the side of the ruler the line may be
off. It is better to hold the pencil at a 45 degree angle against the edge of
the ruler. This undercut will be more accurate

A final word on measuring – rulers are only half of the
equation. The eye of the individual is the other half. Some people have a
better eye for detail than others. You can train your eye to see more
accurately. The more you practice the better your eye for accuracy will become.

Cutting

Rules for cutting:

Measure twice, cut once

Never cut when you are tired

Never cut with a dull blade

Always cut off the black line

You may cut with scissors or a rotary cutter. We will only
talk about cutting with a rotary blade. Blades come in various sizes. The ideal
blade size is the quarter size blade. They are cheaper so you will be more
inclined to use a fresh blade when the old one becomes dull. The smaller size
blade is more stable than the larger blades. The larger blades tend to wobble
when you put pressure on them. This creates uneven wear and dulls the blade
faster.

You will want to cut with the fabric and ruler lined up so
that you are cutting away from your body. This will be easy if you are cutting
stripes. You just move the ruler over and cut another strip. Sometimes you will
be cutting in several directions. Do not pick up the fabric to reposition for
the second cut. Instead, have the fabric on a cutting board and turn the board
to the position you need for cutting. When you pick the fabric up it can become
distorted when you put it back on the cutting board.

Use the ruler sized for the cut you are making. Use large
ruler for large cuts and small ruler for small cuts. Place your hand flat on
the ruler with your fingers splayed out like an octopus to anchor the ruler. Pick
up your hand and move it forward as you cut so that the section you are cutting
is always opposite the hand anchoring the ruler. You may also place your
forearm on the ruler to gain more distance when cutting long pieces. Try to cut
only the length of the ruler. If your cut is longer than the ruler move the
ruler, so that at least half of the ruler is lined up with the cut section. If
you are having trouble cutting a folded piece of fabric open the fabric and cut
one long strip. You must be extra careful when cutting a fold that the cut line
is exactly perpendicular to the fold. To see what happens when your cut is not
perpendicular fold a piece of paper in half and cut a slightly angled line from
the fold. Open the paper to see the distortion. For the best accuracy hold the
rotary cutter at a slight angle against the ruler, the same as you did with the
pencil. You will be making a slight undercut.

If you suspect the blade is skipping it is time for a new
blade. For best results you want to make one cut only. Once the cut is made,
keep the ruler in place and gently move the scrap section away. This is the
time to discover any skipped sections and correct them and change the blade.

When you are cutting a pattern or template it is important
to cut away all of the black line. When you make the template, the ruler
should be on the inside of the template and the line drawn to the outside of
the template. No matter how skinny the line is it has thickness and will add
size to the final cut.

Sewing

You have done everything so far to the best of your ability,
so what could go wrong now? Your fabric will now be subjected to handling and
manipulating that can undo all your best efforts of measuring and cutting. Rule
# 1 – Handle the fabric as little as possible.

The sewing machine:

The sewing machine can be a brutal force in distorting your
beautiful block. You line up the edges and set them under the pressure foot and
sew away, only to discover that the opposite ends no longer meet. Home sewing
machines are really bad at feeding the top and bottom fabrics unevenly as they
sew. One remedy is to use a walking foot. Unfortunately, you must now eyeball
the quarter inch seam allowance or put a piece of tape on the throat plate of
your sewing machine. The sewing machine is not the only factor in misaligned
seams. Remember all those fabric characteristics we talked about? Fabric that
tends to stretch will tend to stretch more as it goes through the sewing
machine. If you have a stretchy piece and a stable piece of fabric you will
want to put the stable piece on top whenever possible to minimize stretching.
Stretch comes from having a cut edge on the weft (selvedge to selvedge). It can
also occur when triangles are cut. You now have a bias edge that can be really
stretchy. Again, try to sew with a stable fabric on top and use a walking foot.
If this is not possible or you find it too difficult to manage then starching
the fabric will create a stiffness like paper that will keep the edges more
stable. Basting is always an option and preferable to pinning. Basting is
underrated and nothing to shy away from. It can be a really fast and effective
way to tame a difficult situation.

Pins:

Sewing with pins will hinder your progress and cause more
problems than they solve. Pins can nick your needle, distort the seam, and slow
your progress. Pins do not work well with ¼ inch presser feet or walking feet. The
best seam is one that is sewn in one long continuous motion with the least
amount of handling the fabric. Learning to sew without pins is liberating and
builds confidence. Confident quilters do the best work.

Sewing the seam:

To actually sew the seam line up the top edges, place under
pressure foot and sew a few stitches. Stop and line up the bottom edges and
hold them firmly together as you complete the seam. You may hold the fabric
with just a wee bit of tension as you sew. Tension is not the same as
stretching the fabric.

There are several ways to sew a ¼ inch seam. Whichever
method you use always make a sample and measure for accuracy before proceeding.

Many machines have a line marking the ¼ inch line. Line up
your fabric and sew a test seam. Press the seam flat and measure with the
C-Thru ruler.

Measure out from the needle hole ¼ inch and place a strip of
masking tape on the throat plate. The piece of tape should extend about 4 – 6
inches towards you and be perpendicular to the left to right edges of the
throat plate. When sewing the seam you should be lining up the fabric several
inches in front of the needle and presser foot. It is too late to line up once
the fabric reaches the needle.

Use a ¼ inch presser foot. These special feet have a guide
that keeps the fabric within the seam allowance. The guide can be a hindrance
when joining seamed pieces together. You may need to stop and raise the presser
foot before feeding the fabric through.

Remember, there is only one measurement for ¼ inch. There is
no measurement for a scant ¼ inch. It either is ¼ or not. It is not worth the
effort to try to figure out how big or little a scant is.

Stitch length:

The preset stitch length is generally the one to use. If you
are finding that you rip out a lot of seams you may increase the stitch length.
This makes it easier to take out stitches. As you improve you can go back to
the preset stitch length. Occasionally, you may want a shorter stitch length
for more precision work such as curves or really small pieces. Paper piecing
also requires a shorter stitch lengthen. Shorter stitch lengths may cause the
fabric to draw up making the seam length shorter. Make a 6 inch sample seam,
press it flat and measure before using the shorter stitch length.

Things are going along smoothly but you decide something
needs to be ripped out. This will also distort the seam edge. The best way to
rip is to cut the top thread at one inch intervals. Then gently pull the bottom
(bobbin) thread.

Pressing

Fact or myth about pressing – Never use steam when pressing a
seam. This is definitely a myth. Fabric is fabric whether you are making
garments or making a quilt. Correct pressing is important in all types of
sewing. The same principals apply in all fabric pressing. To press a seam you
place the iron on the seam and hold the iron in place. If you use steam, you
allow the fabric to dry before handling. You do not move the iron back and
forth. This will stretch the fabric. Most of the time, a hot, dry iron works. A
dry iron works when the fabric is thinner and both pieces are the same weight. Heavier
fabrics such as Kona cotton do not always respond to a dry iron and need the
added boost of a shot of steam. The goal in pressing is to have the flattest
seam possible.

Steps for pressing a seam:

With the seam still flat (not open) press to set the threads
in the fabric. Do this on both sides of the two sewn quilt pieces.

Open the two pieces and finger press the seam to one side.
Usually this is the side towards the darker fabric. To finger press either
pinch the fabric between your fingers or lay the fabric on a flat surface and
press with your fingers.

With the fabric face up press the seam flat with the iron.
By having the fabric face up you can see if a small pleat is formed at the seam
edge before you do the final pressing. If the padding on your ironing board
seams too soft and the seam isn’t flat enough then you should press on a piece
of wood covered with a press cloth.

Always do a test pressing to determine if you need steam or
not.

If you used steam, set the piece aside to dry before using. The
time to dry depends on your climate, dry or humid, and the amount of steam
used.

Fudging

No matter how good you are there will come a day when things
just do not fit. You can rip, take a break, or toss the project as hopeless.
This day happens to the best quilters and is addressed with some simple fixes
that throw out the rules.

The most common problem is the seam that does not match from
end to end. You do not want to cut another piece because you do not know which
piece is in error or you do not have enough fabric to cut another piece.

Fudging techniques:

Longer seams have more wiggle room. First, measure each
piece and correct by cutting if one seam is too long.

When one seam is too short you can stretch it to fit the
correctly cut seam. Sew with the short seam on top and stretch as you sew. Then press with steam to set the fibers.

In extreme cases when the cut is too short and there is no
more fabric to recut, you can wet the fabric and stretch it to the desired size
using your iron to set the threads. I heard a nationally known quilter openly
admit to doing this on her award winning quilt.

You have carefully measured, cut, and sewn a 12 inch block
with multiple pieces and the finished block does not measure 12 inches. After
pressing it flat you can use a template to trim and true it up. You can also
use a steam iron and stretch it to size.

You discover a tiny pleat on one piece. Open the seam
several inches and stretch the shorter piece to match the longer piece that had
the pleat. If the pleat is near an edge, open the seam, re-sew and trim the
excess.

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Sebastian Designs

My formula for living is quite simple. I get up in the morning. And I go to bed at night. In between I occupy myself as best I can.
How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then rest afterwards. __Spanish proverb